She is married to William Christopher Elliott.
They got married on January 17, 1915 at Cleveland Cnty, North Carolina, she was 18 years old.
Child(ren):
REMARKS: Lula, "Lula", Lattimore was born on January 9, 1897, on her
father's
farm in Cleveland County, North Carolina, near Polkville, which is about
12
miles northwest of Shelby, the county seat. She was the daughter of John
Daniel
"John Daniel", Lattimore and Vertie Irene, "Vertie", Mooney and the
oldest of
nine children, who were born in the following order: Lula; Macie; Clara
Fee,
"Clara"; Faye Rhea, "Rhea"; Mary Nancy, "Nancy"; Ora Blanche, "Blanche";
Sarah
Louise, "Louise"; John L., "Johnie"; and Frank Carson, "Frank". Louise
and
Johnie are twins. Clara died in infancy. The others lived to middle or
old age.
Lula was born at home at 3:20 p.m. on Saturday January 9, 1897. The
attending
physician was Dr. Palmer. According to his record book, he was paid
$5.00 for
his services. His record book also shows that she broke her arm on April
9,
1904, and he was paid $1.35 for setting the bone. According to the same
record
book, Macie was born Saturday October 2, 1899, at 9:45 a.m., and Rhea was
born
Saturday August 23, 1903, at 11:30 p.m. He was also paid $5.00 for
delivering
Rhea. Her sister Blanche said that Lula broke her arm after climbing
out on a
limb of an apple tree and jumping off.
Lula grew up on the John Daniel Lattimore farm on Hinton's Creek, which
had
been in the family since her great great grandfather, John Lattimore, who
moved to Rutherford County, North Carolina, in October 1783 and settled on
Duncan's Creek. He had been living in South Carolina on Clark's Fork of
Bullock's Creek, south of Kings Mountain, and had served in the South
Carolina
Militia during the Revolutionary War. On March 3, 1787, he purchased 250
250 acres of land on Hinton's Creek from the widow of William Willis.
Her grandfather, John L. Lattimore, lived on the farm on the north side of
their farm, and her Uncle, Sam Lattimore, lived on the farm on the south
side.
There were a number of other Lattimore families, who were related, in the
area.
Her grandfather, Issac Mooney, lived on a farm about five miles east of
their
farm.
Lula attended the Elliott School, a one-room, one-teacher school about
one mile
west of Polkville, near the Elliott church. The children attended school
when
they could be spared from the farm; i.e., from the end of cotton-picking
season in October until the beginning of the planting season in March.
School
started at 8:00 a.m. and ended at 4:00 p.m. The children had to walk
school,
and, since she was the oldest, she had more responsibilities at home, and
she
had to help her younger sisters get ready and walk to school. After she
On 8/22/93, her sister Blanche recalled that the Elliott School was the
same
size as the Elliott Church. It had a large wood stove in the middle of
the
room, two rows of desks on each side of the stove, a blackboard at the
front of
the room, and a cloakroom at the rear. They only had three subjects:
reading,
spelling, and arithmetic. The students were not broken up into "grades".
Instead they had sets of books, the students worked individually at their
desks, and they graduated when they completed all of the books. The books
provided the equivalent of a seventh grade education. Some students
completed
the books in seven years, while others completed them sooner or took
longer.
Their were no public schools until Fairview School was established and the
Elliott School closed in 1922. There were two private academies in the
area,
Boiling Springs (now Gardner Webb) and Piedmont, near Lawndale. Her
sisters
Macie and Rhea went to Piedmont, and Nancy and Louise went to Boiling
Springs.
Blanche went to Hollis one year and to the consolidated school in
Polkville her
senior year. Johnie, Louise, and Frank went to Polkville High School.
Lula
didn't go to Piedmont because she was anxious to get married.
Lula married William C., "William", Elliott, son of Thomas Forbis,
"Tommmy",
Elliott and Rebecca Bell, "Bell", Hoyle, on January 17, 1915. Her sister
Macie said that had always enjoyed visiting the "Tommy Elliotts", who
lived
about two miles south of the John Daniel Lattimores, and that Lula and
William
"got interested" in each other when she was fourteen, but they waited
until she
was eighteen to get married. Her uncle, Sam Carson, "Sam", Lattimore,
who lived
on the next farm, had married William's sister, Mary Forbis, "Mary",
Elliott,
Also, another uncle, Matt Ransom, "Matt", Lattimore had married another
sister,
Margaret Gordon, "Mag", Elliott.
There were other connections because the Lattimores had settled in the
area
after the Revolution, and the Elliotts had moved to North Carolina from
Virginia in 1807. Lula is descended from John Lattimore, who was born in
Virginia, served in the South Carolina militia during the Revolutionary
War,
and settled on Duncan's Creek after the Revolution. He married Jamima
Stockton,
and they had three children: Daniel, John, and Rachel Lattimore. Lula is
descended from Daniel.
Daniel Lattimore married Sarah Carpenter, and they had nine children:
Catherine, Daniel Dobbin, Margaret, Joe C., Rachel, Sam, Susie, John, and
Jamima Lattimore. Lula is descended from John. John married Isabel
Carson,
and they had eleven children: William, Joe Carson, Daniel Dobbins,
Sallie,
John L., James H., Sam, Frank, Thomas D., Mary C., and Audely Martin.
Most of
the sons served in the Civil War. The town of Lattimore, North Carolina,
was
named for Audely, because he was the station master when they built the
railroad through the town. Lula is descended from John L.
John L. Lattimore married Nancy Amirita Gold, and they had seven
children: John
Daniel, Lula, Margaret Catherine, Samuel Carson, Matt Ransom, Sallie
Matida,
and Joe Clarence. Lula is descended from John Daniel. Many of these
ancestors
are buried in the Lattimore Family Cemetery, on the hill on the north
side of
Hinton's Creek. Lula's brother Johnnie owns the farm on the north side of
Hinton's Creek, including the old John L. Lattimore house and the
cemetery, and
Pauline Lattimore, her brother Frank's widow, owns the farm on the south
side,
including the John Daniel Lattimore house.
Lula and William had twelve children, born in the following order:
Virginia
Kathleen, "Kathleen"; William C., Jr., "Billie" or "Bill"; Vertie Belle,
"Vertie" or "V.B."; Annie Lou, "Ann"; John Thomas, "John" or "J.T."; Frank
Wall, "Frank"; Julia Mae, "Judy"; Charles Lattimore, "Charles" or "Buddy";
Mary Lee, "Mary Lee"; Lula Faye, "Faye"; James Emmett, "James" or "Jim";
and
Aaron Cornwell, "Aaron" or "A.C.". All lived to middle or old age.
William was four years older than Lula. He had gone to Florida for his
health
in 1911, returned to North Carolina, than gone to Oklahoma, where Matt
and Mag
Lattimore had moved after the 1909 floods. After he regained his health,
William went to work in the livery stable in Minco. At Christmas 1913,
Sam
Lattimore and Doc. Gold went to Oklahoma to visit Matt and Mag, and they
told
William that his father was in poor health and not expected to live very
long.
William returned to North Carolina and his father died in June 1914, he
remained
in North Carolina after his father's death, and he married Lula in
January 1915.
In his biographical notes, written in November 1954, William remembers
they
married on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Lula's sister Macie remembers
William
coming for Lula in a buggy with two mules. His sister Belle also
remembers
him hitching up two mules to a buggy, they were married at the preacher's
house in Polkville, and the preacher came out to the buggy to perform the
ceremony, so that Lula would not get wet.
William's father owned a flour, corn, and shingle mill and a four-room
house on
Hinton's Creek, about four miles west of the John Daniel Lattimore house,
across
the county line in Rutherford County, near Hollis. After they were
married,
they lived in the four-room house and William operated the mill until it
was
washed out in the Big Flood of 1916.
William's sister Belle thought they were very happy together until the
flood.
She remembers them coming to visit in a little red Buick that William had
acquired. The chassis was bare except for the two seats and the gas
tank. It
was so exciting, because nobody except their Uncle Bob Elliott and two
other men
in the township owned cars.
The Charlotte Observer reported a hurricane struck the South Atlantic
Coast and
caused unprecended floods that disrupted railroad, telegraph, and
telephone
communications. In his notes, William remembers the heavy rains started
on the
14th; the mill was washed out on the 16th; Lula went into labor; and his
oldest
daughter, Kathleen, was born prematurely on the morning of the 17th. The
heavy
rains didn't end until the 18th.
According to Kathleen's birth certificate, she was born at 1 a.m., and the
attending physician was L. V. Lee, M.D. They were living at Route 1,
Hollis,
North Carolina. William was 23, his occupation was "Miller", and Lula
was 19.
Kathleen, who was born two and a half months premature, wasn't expected to
live. They fed her with the blatter from a fountain pen, used Williams's
handkerchiefs for diapers, put her in the oven to keep her warm.
After they lost everything in the flood, William took a night millers job
at the
Colfax Milling Company in Ellenboro, about nine miles south of Hollis.
After he
worked there a short time, the doctor told him that he had miller's
tuberculosis
or an abcessed lung and that he would have to quit the milling business.
In
September 1916, he returned to Oklahoma, to "cut leather" (make and repair
harness). In December 1916, William went to work at "Johnson & Wall
Garage &
Stock Barn" in Minco, and Lula and Kathleen came to Oklahoma from North
Carolina
on the train, accompanied by William's sister Susan, who carried
Kathleen, who
was still a tiny baby, on a pillow.
The railroad museum in Old Fort, North Carolina, has a "Southern
Railways" map,
and it shows the rather circuitous route that they traveled. They caught
the
"local" in Lattimore, that went through Shelby to Blacksburg, South
Carolina,
about 15 miles south of Shelby. In Blacksburg, they caught the "main
liner" to
Atlanta, where they changed to the train to Birmingham; Sheffield,
Alabama,
(south of Florence); and Memphis. In Memphis, they changed to the
"Chicago,
Rock Island, and Pacific", which ran through North Little Rock, Arkansas;
McAlister, Oklahoma; and Oklahoma City.
In January 1917, after Johnson & Wall sold to Bennet & Son, Lula and
William
moved to Chickasha, about eighteen miles south of Minco, where William
worked
at Barton Brothers Garage, operated by Emmett and Earl Barton. They
lived at
216 South Eighth Street.
Lula was so pleased that Kathleen had grown to "normal" size, that she
kept the
card showing the results of the doctors examination, height: 33 inches;
weight:
23 pounds; and age: one year and 11 months old. Kathleen has the card in
her
collection of memorabilia. William C., Junior, "Bill" or "Billie", was
born
at Chickasha Hospital on July 17, 1918, Kathleen's second birthday.
In December 1918, after B. Wall bought out Bennet & Son, the family moved
back
to Minco, where William worked for B. Wall at the "The Brick Garage" on
Main
Street. They bought the house at Burt and Railroad Streets, next to the
B.
Wall house, on the same block as the Brick Garage. Later, they bought
the lots
across the street for a garden and a large cow pasture.
In 1923, William sold 20 acres of land from his father's estate, and they
fixed
up the house. In August 1924, William got sick while working on a tractor
and had to quit the automobile business. In May 1925 he enlisted in
Service
Battery, 189th Field Artillery, Oklahoma National Guard with the rank of
Sergeant, where he was caretaker mechanic, responsible for taking care of
of the armory and the old World War I army trucks and other National Guard
Equipment. The armory was in the old Brick Garage on Main Street until
the new
armory was built in 1936.
Vertie, Ann, John, Frank, and the rest of the children were born in Minco
in
the house at Burt and Railroad Streets. They all started school in
Minco, and
Kathleen, Bill, Vertie, Ann, John, and Judy graduated from Minco High
School.
Frank graduated from Abilene High School; Charles and Mary Lee from
Killeen
High School; and Faye, James, and Aaron from Vian High School.
In 1929 they remodeled the house and built a new barn, chicken house, and
coal
house. As long as they lived in Minco, they always had a garden and kept
a milk
cow and a flock of chickens. The older boys milked the cows, and the
younger
ones herded them from the pasture to milking lot in the evening and back
to the
pasture in the morning, under Lula's direction.
Bill and John played football, basketball, and baseball while they were
in high
school, and Ann played clarinet in the band. Frank, Charles, and Aaron
delivered newspapers. The family attended the Baptist Church.
Kathleen, Bill, Vertie, and Ann went away to college after they graduated
from
high school. Kathleen started teaching after she finished college. Bill
joined
the National Guard after he completed Junior College, was mobilized with
the
National Guard, went to Officers Candidate School, and was commissioned
in the
Quartermaster Corps. Vertie worked at Borden General Hospital in
Chickasha
after she graduated from college. John joined the Navy after he
graduated from
high school.
William was mobilized with the National Gurad in September 1940.
Although he
was able to come home about once a month, responsibility for managing the
household fell on Lula. In April 1942, William was transferred to Camp
Barkley, Texas, near Abilene. Housing was scarce in Abilene, but he was
able
to rent a house on Buffalo Gap highway, south of Wylie, convenient to Camp
Barkley. Most of the ranch had been taken over by the Army for an
artillery
range, but the house was available, and the family moved there in August
1942.
The Wylie school bus picked up the children and brought them home. The
family
also attended church services at Wylie. In April 1943, the ranch was
sold, and
the family moved to Abilene, where they remained until after the war
ended.
Although William was home every night, he left early in the morning, and
he
he worked late. After all, there was a war on. Bill was in the Army Air
Corps
in England, John was on a cruiser in the Pacific, and Frank was on a
landing
ship in the Pacific. Vertie was working in an Army hospital, and Ann was
working at Camp Barkley. Kathleen was teaching school in Oklahoma.
There were
still six children living at home and attending Abilene High School, South
Junior High School, or Central Elementary School.
World War II ended in August 1945; the family moved back to Minco in
October
1945; and Bill, John, and Frank returned from the war. Bill enrolled at
the University of Oklahoma at Norman, and John and Frank enrolled at
Murray
State College at Tishomingo. Kathleen took a job in Oklahoma City, and
Ann
returned to college. Vertie remained in Chickasha, until 1947, when she
took a
job in Oklahoma City. They all came home for the holidays and frequently
for weekends. Although Bill, Ann, and Judy married, it remained a close
knit
family with Lula the focus.
William remained at Camp Barkley until it closed and he was transferred to
Camp Hood, Texas, near Killeen. He was able to come home about once a
month,
until he arranged for housing on the base, and the family moved to Camp
Hood in
March 1947. They lived in an apartment in a converted barracks at 40th
Street
and Battalion Avenue. An Army bus took the older children to Killeen
where
they attended Killeen High School. The younger children went to school
on the
base.
Lula had more time to read, write letters, and rest at Camp Hood. There
were only five children living at home, and they were all in school.
Charles
graduated from high school in May 1948 and went away to college, the
University
of Missouri at Columbia. It was peacetime, and William had more time to
help
with the shopping and other family activities. They also began to
discuss their
plans for retirement.
William bought a stock farm in Eastern Oklahoma, retired from the Army in
May
1949, and moved the family to the farm. Mary Lee married after she
graduated
from high school in May 1949, so there were only three children still
living
at home: Faye, James, and Aaron. They had to improvise while the new
house
was being built, there was lots of hard work, and it was a new way of life
that including milking cows, working in the garden, and building fences.
Faye, James, and Aaron were active in school activities, and the family
regularly attended church services in Vian. The older children came home
for
for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and other holidays and frequently for
weekends.
Faye graduated from high school in May 1951 and married a local boy.
James
graduated from high school in May 1952 and went away to college. Aaron
graduated from high school in May 1953 and joined the Air Force.
In 1954 William suffered a stroke after driving a tractor in the hot
sun. The
stroke ended his farming activities. Lula took good care of William, and
he
made a remarkable recovery. He took up painting as therapy, and he took a
correspondence course in radio and television repair. Eventually, he
resumed
driving. Lula and William continued to live on the farm until 1963, when
the
the farm was sold and they moved to Oklahoma City to be near Vertie, Ann,
John,
and Judy, who lived in Oklahoma City, and Kathleen, who lived about 70
miles
southwest of Oklahoma City.
Lula died of a heart attack and stroke in December 1963. Although the
children
were scattered, they all reached her bedside before she expired. Bill was
living in Virgina, Frank and James in Louisiana, Charles in California,
and
Faye in Missouri. Services were conducted in Oklahoma City, and she was
buried
in the Elliott plot in Evergreen Cemetery in Minco. Having lived there
for
24 years, she always thought of Minco as her home, and she wanted to be
buried
there.
Her oldest son, Bill, was buried next to her when he died of leukemia in
May
in May 1975, and William was buried on the other side when he died from
prostrate cancer in July 1977, after several years of failing health.
There is
space for Bill's wife, Vertie, John, Caroline, and others who have
indicated
they want to be buried in the family plot at Minco. Even now, Lula is
keeping
her family together.
SOURCES: Original data from Thomas Forbis Elliott family tree prepared
by Mary
Gordon Elliott. Additional data from William Christopher Elliott entry
(#13507) in "Peiter Heyl And His Descendants", by Elizabeth Hoyle Rucker;
biographical notes prepared by William C. Elliott in November 1954 and
distributed to family members by Vertie Elliott; newspaper clippings and
other
memorabilia collected by Kathleen Elliott Lambert; conversations at the
William C. Elliott family reunion in July 1993; and conversations at the
Elliott Family reunion in August 1993.
The "Mooney" family name is sometimes spelled "Mauney". The original
spelling
was "Muni", according to the passenger list for the ship Phoenix, which
arrived
in Philadelphia on August 28, 1750, from Rotterdam, which contains the
following names: Jacob Muni, Jr.; Christian Muni; Jacob Muni, Senr.;
Condrad
Muni; and Andreas Muni. Some descendants changed their family name to
Mauney
and others chose Mooney. "Mooney" appears on Vertie Mooney's marriage
certificate and on her grave marker. "Mooney" also appears on her
father's
grave marker in the 1880 Census listing.
Data Compiled and Edited by Charles Lattimore Elliott. Latest revision:
7/95
MUCH OF THIS RESEARCH IS FROM MERGED RECORDS.
TO INSURE ACCURACY YOU WILL NEED TO VERIFY THE DATA BUT YOU WILL KNOW WHERE TO START. I HOPE IT IS OF SOME HELP.
DON
Lula Lattimore | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1915 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
William Christopher Elliott | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The data shown has no sources.